Nice points, agree Estonia can save on a lot of issues seen the size of the country.

The (negative) comments towards Russia, seems a bit off if you ask me
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~expat
[13.02.2012, 16:04]

"The (negative) comments towards Russia," is Ilve's standard procedure and part of (nearby) every speech/ interview. It's as simple as that and commonly ignored, if not ridiculed.

~knut albers
[13.02.2012, 16:29]

Some of his comments are becoming laughable to the extent that even Estonians are openly mocking them. Did you see his comment that "in Soviet Estonia there were no restaurants"? Couple of hundred comments on Estonian-language delfi mocking him, comments like, "so sad that our 'American' president knows so little about our country"...

And I love his repeated comments about Russian being the "language of occupation" meanwhile he goes off and studies French, another major language of occupation.

Ilves mention the strong economic growth in Brazil and China. Of course it is difficult for him to incluse all the 4 BRIC - countries (especially the R=Russia).
Ilves can talk about Russia not beeing a superpower anymore untill his face is blue. The fact is that the economic growth in Russia is far ahead of the european union as well as USA. Shouldn't this tell Ilves and other troubled estonians where to make market investments ?
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Looks like kev describe mostly Norway and Denmark who can be sumorized in two words: beer and oil. Russia has a very good economy and industrial production compared to half of Europe. And no it is not communist fault that certain nations just as Poland despite having 40 million people can't compete with Russia.

~another bundy tox
[13.02.2012, 23:48]

"Speaking of Russia, Ilves said that one thing that we should understand globally is that Russia is stopping to be a superpower and the US is not taking Russia seriously any more... I would say that the attitude of Europe and US towards Russia should be that of well-wishing and caring lack of interest."

Uh HELLO. Russia may not be the superpower it was as the USSR, but it's hardly the irrelevance this man is trying to portray. In fact just look at the news, I think the US and Europe was taking Russia VERY SERIOUSLY last week.

~:-[]
[14.02.2012, 03:48]

at least i put my name unlike other "secret posters" that simply spout crap.

Ok.. "talking out my ass" maybe you should do some research.. here is a small clip of an article posted in CNN that came out today... after I had already posted my comment..

....."The real hero of Russia's rescue was oil. The dramatic rise in the average Russian's income has been a consequence not of Putin's policies but of oil prices. The price of oil when Putin came to office was $27 a barrel. From that point, it began an almost unbroken rise and is now at $116 a barrel. And oil is the lifeblood of Russia's economy. It provides two-thirds of its exports, half of the federal government's revenues.
The Russian state has used these revenues to dole out patronage across the country. It is widely believed in the West that Putin stays in power through repression. Actually, he does so in larger measure through bribery.
In the short run, Putin will be able to win the March election and consolidate power through a mixture of repression and patronage. His problems are more long-term. His government has ramped up its revenues to the point that it now needs oil to approach $125 a barrel simply to balance the budget.
Russia's demographics are terrible. It has a population that's aging and shrinking, which means pension and healthcare costs will rise as people retire; labor productivity in Russia is abysmal; the Caucasus region is almost turning into a separate country; and Russia's ethnic diversity is straining its sense of nationalism. But, like Saudi Arabia, like Iran, like Venezuela - all somewhat dysfunctional regimes - the Russian regime will survive these challenges until and unless oil prices come down."

I stand by my comment... Russia survives on oil and gas. Without it... they fall apart. It's the only reason they can be players in the world.

~kev
[14.02.2012, 18:22]

-kev and Ilves may carry on based on CNN and CIA and whoever..
Estonian companies thinking about falling exports to a EU-area in deep shit, should look at the opportunities in oilcountries like Russia and Norway and others. Money from oil and gas creates business and a growing economy in these countries whatsoever. Go and look for yourselves, and don't let political crap stop you from looking at new possibilities

llves don't know nothing :)He wakes after a good afternoon nap, and utters all in half sleep. :))
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~Roger Moore
[13.02.2012, 16:56]

Ahhhh, our FSB Shakespeare is back! Love the intellectual and fact based arguments you so eloquently state.

~@RM
[13.02.2012, 17:04]

It is the beloved asshok bakshi (=Roger Moore). May be he is a member of the FSB, may be he is just dissapointed Indian. Who really knows about the other in a comment section like this?! Or there are two persons, or one person not aware he has two personalities with the same story about SEB staff and divorce and a daughter?!

He's right about the embassy thing, but I'm not sure that's such a big problem money-wise compared to other areas. I think the EU should establish embassies around the world, and EU countries can just work out of there unless they prefer to have their own embassies (which I'm sure the larger countries will do). Then smaller countries can share all the overhead costs of running an embassy, thus making it cheaper.

The bigger issue is reforming the local government structure within Estonia, which he did mention. Tiny towns have their own local government, when that should just be handled at the county level.
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Russia is under “estimated” supper power which can run over China very easy. It’s sad that after so many years’ independents Estonian’s are in civil war between each other. I feel sorry for my country men and women. We better off having Greek version…….
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Toomas Hendrik, do not worry about the EU blaming enlargement, everyone knows it is the Greeks who caused this crisis.
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~Observer
[16.02.2012, 01:48]

The Estonians certainly have no reason to be in a huff and start to burn German flags. But, We MUST give them advice. Because we give OUR money to them (one third of aid [total aid 20% of Estonian GDP] comes indirectly from German taxpayers. Alternative: No more advice, and no more money. I would prefer that - if we can Greece let get bankrupts because it is beyond redemption, the EU core zonewill be considered as strengthened. In addition, also the other border states (like Estonia) would come back to discipline very quickly(i.e. tackle real reforms, not waiting for German taxpayers assets).

Letter to the Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs
(Draft 2.VI 12)
Sir – The Document (*):
EUROPEAN COMMISSION. 30.5.2012. COM(2012) 311 final provisoire Recommendation for a COUNCIL RECOMMENDATION on Estonia’s 2012 national reform programme and delivering a Council Opinion on Estonia’s stability programme for 2012-2015 {SWD(2012) 311}
gives on page 5 the statement:
„ (15) In the context of the European Semester, the Commission has carried out a comprehensive (sic! ÜE) analysis of Estonia’s economic policy. It has assessed the stability programme and national reform programme. It has taken into account not only their relevance for sustainable fiscal and socio-economic policy in Estonia but also their compliance with EU rules and guidance, given the need to reinforce the overall economic governance of the European Union by providing EU-level input (sic! ÜE) into future national decisions. Its recommendations under the European Semester are reflected in recommendations (1) to (5) below.“
Unfortunately from the Macroeconomics point of view (**) the comprehensiveness in this Document seems to be insufficient in the analytical part and the recommendations input superficial compared with the EU-level overall economic governance knowledge structure:
a) In the field of analysis there seems first of all to be the neglecting omissions in the studies of the quality of extant economic institutions/mechanisms (especially taxing system, and statistical knowledge structure formation mechanism), also in the statistical analysis of several fundamental macroeconomic indicators e.g. - convergence/divergence, sustainability (economic potential), and payments balance as well the international investment position, economic inequality etc.
b) Unfortunately it seems that by providing EU-level input recommendations not enough of the EU-level complete socio-economic knowledge space has been exploited – recommendations for structural reforms (especially for the harmonization of economic mechanisms) are scanty and superficial - urgent competent recommendation are badly needed for instant reform of the Estonian tax system in the sense of harmonization of moral competition with member countries, for enhancement of Estonian socio-economic sustainability/convergence, lowering the risks of domestic capital and labour flight and avoiding worsening of the Estonian international investment position (by that considering Estonian idiosyncrasies e.g. with the past occupational limbo etc).
***********************************************************
(*) http://ec.europa.eu/europe2020/pdf/nd/csr2012_estonia_en.pdf